The present invention relates to improvements in apparatus for processing exposed and developed photographic customer films and other photosensitive material, especially portions (prints) of exposed and developed photographic paper which bear images of the film frames.
Processing apparatus for exposed and developed photographic films and corresponding (related) prints comprise a first severing unit which cuts successive customer films so that each film yields a group or set of sections having a length which is suitable for insertion into pockets bearing data identifying the respective customers and serving for shipment of completed orders to the customers or to the dealers who accept exposed but undeveloped photographic films from customers. Such apparatus further comprise a second severing unit which cuts a continuous web of exposed developed photosensitive material so that the web yields a succession of discrete prints. The first severing unit embodies a cutter which severs a film on detection of markers which are applied to the film to denote the frame lines between neighboring film frames, and the second severing unit also embodies a cutter actuated by a monitoring device which scans the web of photosensitive material for the presence of indicia denoting successive prints. It is also known to equip such processing apparatus with means for automatically delivering sections of customer films and stacks of related prints to a station where the film sections and the related prints are introduced into the aforementioned pockets which bear data identifying the customers as well as other data denoting the number and type of prints to be made and/or other information.
The output of recent types of film developing and copying machines is very high. Such machines operate automatically with a minimum of supervision. As a rule, a large number of discrete customer films will be spliced together to form an elongated web or strip which is transported through the developing machine and thereupon through the copying machine. During copying, the rear side of the web of photosensitive material onto which the images of film frames are exposed is normally provided with markers which identify successive prints and are monitored by the cutting device of the corresponding severing unit to insure that the web is cut at proper intervals so that each severed portion of the web constitutes a discrete print. The collating operation must be carried out in such a way that sections of a given customer film are invariably assembled with the corresponding (related) prints; this reduces the number of customer complaints and reduces the outlay for personnel in charge of detecting improperly collated prints and film sections. In other words, a pocket which is provided with data identifying a customer or dealer must receive film sections belonging to the customer who is identified on the pocket as well as the prints which bear images of the frames of such film sections.
In many presently known processing apparatus, a commercially available film cutter is mounted on a table or desk adjacent to a commercially available cutter for webs of photographic paper. The webs of photographic paper and the strips of film frames are advanced along horizontal paths to that portion of the table where the webs, the films and the paper are severed and where the severed material can be reached by an attendant who is in charge of introducing film sections and prints into the corresponding pockets. As a rule, the mounting of the cutting devices is such that an attendant grasps a set or group of film sections with one hand and a stack of prints with the other hand. These parts are then introduced into a pocket which is located on the table. The introduction into a pocket must be preceded by the transfer of film sections from the one hand into the other hand (which carries the prints), or vice versa, in order to enable the free hand of the attendant to grasp and open the corresponding pocket. Such transfer of film sections or prints takes up much time, especially when the attendant is to collate and pocket film sections and prints which issue from modern high-speed processing apparatus. Consequently, the cutters for films and for the webs of photosensitive material must be operated intermittently, i.e., they are set in motion only after the attendant completes a customer order by inserting the film sections and related prints into the corresponding pocket, by thereupon closing or sealing the pocket and by depositing the closed and/or sealed pocket into a tray or onto a conveyor for transport to a further station, e.g., to the shipping department.
Another drawback of the just described processing apparatus is that, though the locations where the sections of severed films and the corresponding prints accumulate on the table are readily accessible to the attendant, such person is not in a position to visually ascertain whether or not the prints and the film sections which are being introduced into a pocket actually belong to one and the same customer. It has been found that visual inspection of film frames and prints, at least at arbitrarily selected intervals, is likely to lead to rapid detection of improper operation of the severing units, i.e., such visual inspection enables the attendant to detect the assembly of prints with non-related film sections or vice versa at an early stage of malfunctioning of synchronizing means for the severing units so that the number of improperly assembled film sections and prints is relatively small. An experienced attendant can rapidly ascertain whether or not the prints of a given stack are actually related to the film sections which are about to be introduced into a customer pocket, together with the freshly assembled stack, because the attendant merely looks at the motif of one or more prints and of one or more frames of a film section and is then in a position to positively ascertain or to assume, with a high degree of probability, that the film sections are or are not related to the prints which, in the absence of inspection, would be introduced into one and the same pocket. Spot checking of prints and film sections is especially desirable when the processing apparatus is not equipped with automatic monitoring means for ascertaining whether or not the film sections and the prints are transported in synchronism with each other.